Chapter 1 A Starry Night

All seemed perfect on that clear, starry night to those who liked to stargaze during a warm summer. Winry and Pinako Rockbell were sitting out on the front porch watching as Den chased and tried to catch the fireflies. Pinako looked over to Winry and was going to comment about Den getting too far out. However, she saw that Winry was fighting to keep her eyes open. It was then that she realized how late it was getting. She called out for Den to come back then gently shook Winry's shoulder. Winry blinked her eyes and turned her head back and forth as if looking for someone. Pinako took notice of her granddaughter's searching gaze and voiced her guess to whom she was looking for so persistently.

"Winry, you have to stop this. He'll come back when he wants to or needs his arm fixed again. You've been staying up until a few hours after midnight just to turn around and get back up at dawn. This isn't healthy for you."

"I know. It's just that I want to be awake when he comes back," Winry barely got out through a yawn.

"Well, you won't be lasting much longer if you keep doing this to yourself everyday. Now, go take Den inside and you get yourself to bed. I'll be sure to wake you if they come by while you are asleep."

Letting another yawn escape her lips, Winry obeyed and let Den inside. She slowly made her way to her room upstairs and changed into comfortable night clothes. At last she was able to fall back on her bed. She fell asleep before her head even hit the pillow. Den came into her room and went to sleep at the foot of the bed, his automail leg gently resting against Winry's bare foot. Winry dreamed about Ed while she was sleeping, but in the morning she wouldn't remember what she was dreaming about.

--

The next day, Winry slowly opened her eyes only to have the bright sunlight shine through the window at them. She quickly closed them and yawned. Grandma Pinako opened her bedroom door and saw Winry was up.

"See how wonderful getting sleep is? You've been asleep through most of the morning," she said while fully pulling the curtains open. Winry sat up and stretched. "You know, you should hurry up and get dressed so you can get back to work. We have a customer coming later to get an automail arm."

Now fully awake, Winry asked a question while quickly getting dressed. "What happened to him?"

"He was on a mission and got his arm blown off. I was told he is a state alchemist. I told myself I wouldn't allow any dogs of the military step foot in my home let alone if they need automail. Ed's the exception tough. We are in real need for the money right now, so a customer is a customer," Pinako said as she stepped to leave the bedroom.

Winry took the news as an opportunity to ask the man if he heard about where Ed and Al were. It turned out the mad had Heard of the Elric brothers, but said the last time they were seen was when Mustang gave them a mission to the West.

As Winry went to bed that night, she wished that wherever Ed and Al were they would be safe and see her soon. What she didn't know was that not ten minutes after she wished this, it started raining and Al came into view of the Rockbell home carrying a torn up and half dead Edward Elric.